‘Brooklyn Nine-Nine’ Is Back, and Stephanie Beatriz Is Making the Most of It

When Fox pulled the plug on “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” in May, many followers and critics have been shocked. But Stephanie Beatriz, who performs the no-nonsense detective Rosa Diaz, was extra cleareyed.

“I didn’t think we were done with the world of ‘Brooklyn,’ but I’m also realistic,” she mentioned just lately. “I thought to myself maybe if Netflix or Hulu picks it up and lets us finish out the ride for a few more episodes, then maybe that seems like the best-case scenario.”

Instead, NBC greenlit a 13-episode season and later prolonged it by 5 episodes — Season 6 of “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” started Jan. 10. The renewal offers followers an opportunity to uncover extra about Rosa, a leather-based jacket-clad crime fighter who was solely beginning to open up, on a private stage, by the finish of the present’s run on Fox. While Rosa had beforehand shared obscure bits of historical past — like the time she bought kicked out of a dance academy for “beating up the ballerinas” — her greatest reveal of all occurred final season, when she got here out as bisexual.

“Over the last six seasons, Rosa has gone from being an enigma whom people knew nothing about, to an enigma whom people now know an incredibly tiny amount about,” the showrunner Dan Goor mentioned.

Rosa is finest identified to followers for her anger administration points, deadpan disposition and secrecy.

“In comedy you have the ‘straight man,’ who’s basically the deadpan, flat comedy partner,” Beatriz mentioned. “And in ‘Brooklyn Nine-Nine,’ the bi woman is a straight man, which is hilarious.”

In actuality, the typically bubbly Beatriz, 37, is the emotional antithesis of her character. Even so, she sees shades of her personal character in Rosa’s fierceness and candor, and the inspiration for the character’s bisexual identification was knowledgeable by the actress’s personal life.

“Secretly in my mind, I think, I was playing her as someone who was attracted to all genders,” Beatriz said.

Born in Neuquén, Argentina, Beatriz emigrated with her parents when she was 2 years old to Webster, Tex., just outside Houston. Her interest in acting began with that perennial refuge for young outsiders: high school theater.

“That’s where the weird kids were; that’s where the gay kids felt comfortable. A lot of people of color gravitated toward that group,” Beatriz said. “I just felt like the best version of myself when I was with that group of kids.”

After high school, Beatriz graduated with a theater degree from Stephens College in Missouri, then moved to New York.

“I knew there was space for me in theater, but I didn’t know if there was space for me in TV and film,” she said. Eventually, she found her place: Following bit parts in a few TV series and a notable supporting turn in the film “Short Term 12,” Beatriz got her big break in “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” which debuted in 2013.

“People that maybe don’t understand bisexuality completely and haven’t had a lot of experience with it, might have questioned [my marriage],” she said. “I’m in a partnership that’s monogamous for the rest of my life that’s exciting to me, but [that] may be disappointing to some fans.”

A proudly silly cop sitcom might seem like an unlikely catalyst for change, Beatriz said. But in Rosa’s progression, she sees the chance to move the emotional needle for a certain segment of the fan base.

“I’ve been watching this character on my favorite show for five seasons — now do I hate her because she’s bi?” she said, rhetorically. “I think the best learning, growing and conversations with people can come out of art, and particularly fun art that makes you laugh.”

After the brief brush with cancellation, Beatriz now gets to continue Rosa’s story line on “Brooklyn Nine-Nine.” There are hints of an evolved Rosa in the new season; in the premiere, the character’s soft side peeks through when she expresses concern over Captain Holt (Andre Braugher) losing out on the position of police commissioner. (Her gruff nature quickly returns, however, when she finds herself on the verge of losing an important case.) While Beatriz is coy about the details, she promises more evident growth for the formerly buttoned-up Rosa, who will continue to slowly let her co-workers into her life.

“I also can say the exploration of Rosa’s romantic life and her inner-workings will continue,” she said. Whatever the dubious response to her own relationships, Beatriz stated that she will keep using her platform to be a vocal LGBTQ advocate.

In Season 6, Beatriz also realized a professional goal: She directed an episode of “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” which will air March 14. She admitted that along the way she had to overcome “me da pena,” a Spanish expression that describes the sensation of both embarrassment and the shame surrounding it.

“I think a lot of women identify with that feeling,” Beatriz said. “We’re all sort of culturally talking about this moment now where women have felt like, ‘Why haven’t I asked? Why not me?’” But she took the arrival of the once improbable sixth season of “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” as a sign that she needed to ask for what she wanted, and Goor gave her the go-ahead.

The self-doubt Beatriz once felt has inverted into a kind of fierce determination that Rosa Diaz would be proud of, she said, and she’s trying to remain open to whatever opportunities come her way.

“I just really like telling stories,” she said. “And it turns out I’m pretty good at it.”